November 14, 2017

Jimmy Wayne put on a great show last year for Capital City CASA supporters at Millbottom. This year CASA is expanding the venue to the Miller Performing Arts Center. The show is a combination of Wayne's original songs and the story of his challenging childhood -- a perfect inspirational agenda for a CASA evening. Get your tickets today!

November 08, 2017

According to Fundara.com fifty percent of small businesses survive less than five years. Hats off to folks who try. This shop on Ellis Boulevard did not last very long. The store name may have predicted the outcome.

November 01, 2017

Earlier this month, the Kansas City Star printed an article announcing the results of the Municipal Equality Index reflecting a score of zero for Jefferson City, but scores of 100 for Columbia, Kansas City and St. Louis. The article itself was not entirely unbalanced, but the headline was very misleading. It shouted:

"THIS MISSOURI CITY IS ONE OF THE WORST FOR LGBT PEOPLE IN THE NATION, REPORT SAYS."

If you just read the headline and skimmed the story, you could jump to the conclusion that Jefferson City is hostile to its LGBT residents. I cannot say for sure whether my LGBTQ friends face hostile attitudes in Jefferson City, but I have never heard such a complaint. I could not understand how the scoring could be so drastically different for the three towns.

When I looked deeper I found that the headline was flat wrong. The study only examines municipal codes. A city gets a good score if there are specific laws and policies aimed at protecting and supporting it LGBT population. It does not even study whether the laws and policies are enforced, or how effective they are. In fact, if you will find this honest disclaimer:

"[The study] is not a ranking of the friendliest cities to live. It neither attempts to quantify how respectful cities enforce their laws, nor does it gauge the experience of an LGBTQ person interacting wth the police or city hall . . . The MEI specifically rates cities on their laws and policies; it is not a measure of an LGBTQ person's lived experience in that city." (page 39).

As I think this through, I'll bet that the low scoring cities tend to be cities where the prevailing attitude is that local government (and all other levels of government) should be limited in how much they attempt to control the lives of their citizens. I'll bet low scoring cities, in addition to not codifying LGBT protection, also tend to have less restrictive measures in other areas of governance such as code enforcement, environmental and historic preservation. I believe Jefferson City residents value those things, but they would rather that government not hold a gun to their heads. In fact, one could conclude that we don't have laws and policies protecting the LGBT population because we don't need them. Maybe our residents are welcoming and friendly to the extent that the LGBT population has not expressed the need for such measures. The study shows a heavy concentration of 100 scores in larger cities, where (I suggest) local government is prone to regulate everything aggressively because of the problems they face due to their size and complexity.

I think the study does point out some interesting facts, and there are things we can learn from it. Maybe Jefferson City can look to laws and policies that seem to work elsewhere. Maybe we should head off problems before they arise. Maybe there is hostility that I'm not aware of. But I suspect (but of course do not know for sure) that our LGBT population gets along just fine with everyone else, and I do not feel the KC Star headline saying Jefferson City is "one of the worst for LGBT in the nation" was fair at all. In fact, it was misleading and it represents journalism far below the standard normally set by that newspaper.

October 31, 2017

I understand that nurses, doctors and hospital administrators receive training and education in very technical fields. But apparently their curriculum is a little light on grammar. I guess the third one could be correct . . . if it was a really tiny hospital . . . with just one patient.

October 29, 2017

At daycare they used to call son David a "gentle soul." Larry Horstdaniel, the Madison Street barber and sage, is a much older version of the same personality type. He's been at his present location for 48 years, and at another downtown location for 16 years before that.

Larry's wife, Barbara, passed away recently after several months of decline following a stroke. Larry's simple message on the shop door let his customers know.

I can't imagine how heavy his heart was as he wrote those few words to let his clients know why the barber pole was not rotating that day.

October 26, 2017

Every test I've taken reveals I am an introvert. This explains why after city council debates and court appearances I would feel exhausted. Extroverts, on the other hand, are energized by such experiences. Susan Cain says it's OK. So the question is whether this blog post is intra or my attempt to be get out on the limb and be extra? Sorry. This is very exhausting.

October 24, 2017

Perhaps the most misunderstood document in the legal world is the humble quitclaim deed - referred to by many as "quick claim" deeds. Here's a quick tutorial to avoid embarrassment the next time you attend a real estate closing.

Let's start with the most potent deed -- the General Warranty Deed. These are what you find in most real estate transactions. The grantor (seller) warrants good title going all the way back to 1820 or whenever the land came out of the government's hands with a "patent." That warranty is not as scary as it might sound due to title insurance and multiple past transactions involving that parcel where title was scrutinized and blessed.

A Quitclaim Deed is at the opposite end of the spectrum. It warrants nothing. As the law professors say, "I'll give you a Quitclaim Deed to the Grand Canyon." That's because the grantor makes no guarantees whatsoever. So . . . . why have these deeds at all? Actually, quitclaim deeds play a vital role in the real estate world. They're used to confirm that the grantor has no further interest in the parcel. For example, a bank can release a mortgage with a Quitclaim Deed. In a divorce, when one spouse is awarded the home, the other spouse may be required to relinquish his or her interest in the home - typically with a Quitclaim Deed. I can release an easement or cancel a recorded sale contract with a Quitclaim Deed. I'm just saying "Whatever interest I have, if any, is yours, but I make no guarantees that I have any interest at all."

Now if you really want to impress your real estate agent or someone at a cocktail party, casually mention a Special Warranty Deed. These deeds only warrant that the grantor (seller) did not do anything to mess up the title while he was the owner. The grantor is not on the hook for any title defects arising prior to his ownership. Big companies like to convey with Special Warranty Deeds so the potential liability for old unknown defects are not carried on their books forever.

We do lots of real estate at CVDL. Call if we can help with your next purchase or sale.